UPDATE: Perry spokesman Josh Havens said by email: “Gov. Perry and a majority of the Texas Legislature have sent the very clear message that they do not support expanding Medicaid under Obamacare.”

Eleven Texas Democrats in Congress are taking a new tack on urging Gov. Rick Perry to add Medicaid expansion to the agenda of the special session: Do it for the veterans.

The letter signed by 11 of the dozen Texas Democrats who serve in the U.S. House of Representatives cites the long-standing arguments for expansion – that it would help insure 1.5 million Texans (some say closer to 1 million); lure $90 billion in federal funds (some say $100 billion); and relieve the burden on taxpayers for uncompensated care.

It also cites a study about the effect on veterans in saying nearly 49,000 veterans in Texas won’t get health-care access because the state hasn’t expanded Medicaid.

U.S. Rep. Castro

“The study cited in the letter shows us what we already know, as the state with the highest percentage of uninsured folks, Texas has the most to gain from participating in a program we are already paying for. With the special session underway in the Texas Legislature, the Governor has a chance to ensure that millions of Texans, including 49,000 of our military veterans, have access to quality health care.

We know this can be done and hope Governor Perry does the right thing,” said U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro in a statement.

U.S. Rep. Pete Gallego said in a statement, “This report makes a compelling case for Medicaid expansion. I just returned from Afghanistan where I met with our brave service-members. We have an obligation to be there for them when they return. They deserve more than just rhetoric.”

Rep. Pete Gallego

Perry, a veteran who has advocated for other veterans, took a lead role in stomping on the idea if Medicaid expansion during the regular session, saying it doesn’t make sense to broaden an unsustainable system.

Advocates of either expanding Medicaid or finding another way to provide health care to needy Texans who’d qualify (the latter idea advanced by some top Republicans) found themselves banging their heads against the wall time and again when they appealed to him during the regular session.

This article was first posted on our sister blog Texas Politics. You can follow Peggy Fikac on Twitter: @PFikac